Speaker
Joe Mohr
Description
We have carried out a multi-wavelength mm-wave survey of
2500 deg^2 in the southern extragalactic sky in search of
Sunyaev-Zel'dovich Effect signatures from galaxy clusters.
More than 600 cluster candidates have been selected from the
mm-wave data, and we are currently characterizing these
candidates to determine their redshifts and improve our
understanding of their masses. This cluster sample is an
approximately mass limited cluster sample extending to
beyond redshift z=1 and it currently includes three of the
four most massive discovered clusters beyond redshift z=1.
Initial analyses of a small subset indicate that the
cosmological constraints are in good agreement with other
studies. Efforts at improved mass calibration of the SZE
mass--observable relation include using mass indicators like
Micm and Yx from Chandra and XMM and galaxy velocity
dispersions from optical spectroscopy with Gemini, Magellan
and the VLT. We are beginning a direct mass calibration
using weak lensing observations from Hubble, the VLT and
Magellan. We are working to complete an analysis of the
sample of over 200 clusters detected in the 2008 and 2009
SPT observing seasons.
